Cookie monster

Monday, December 11, 2023

It's a calm morning that starts with calls, scheduling the week, and a short walk. 

After lunch, W and I record a video for our partners before he heads to a few meetings. The "alien" shrub is blooming again, starting with yellow spheres.

Once it begins to ripen, the black pods appear. Its' a strange and wonderful plant.

IbuS washes and cleans after yesterday's party. I rinsed and stacked everything and the Roomba did its rounds yesterday. As IbuS heads home today, the glass tables and windows have been washed, the tablecloth is free of ants, and the dishes are done. What a treasure she is to us.

Tuesday

No meetings today other than breakfast after a walk. It's relaxing to sit outside with our noodle dishes. #NaraPark is such a pretty setting.

Our neighbor has suffered the loss of her husband. We meet her daughter from Belgium and pray for blessings on her household.

When we get back home, we call W's mom for her 92nd birthday. Wow - well done! Sadly, she can't hear the timbre of my voice on calls so I rarely hop on. Today I hope she heard the greetings loud and clear.

The micro-greens (sprouts) from Komori are delivered. Delicious and nutritious - we cut these into our salads.

PakG goes back and forth to the office with whatever's missing for Alice and three helpers. They are packing 160+ Christmas cookie bags to give away. For a month, IbuA and IbuS have been hard at work, baking a variety of cookies. We need to keep enough cookies (4 big boxes!) for Christmas Day. The rest are flying out the door.

The carport roof is a mess. Termites and carpenter ants have been hard at work in the wood frame. There are holes in the corrugated metal roofing when the wind has dipped the jackfruit branches across it. So today is repair day for that, too. We don't bother the landlord who lives far away and cares less about the roof than we do.

We try Miss Bee again for lunch - the staff is friendly and the setting is beautiful. We slump into the deep chairs for a picture.

The food is not as good as we remember. Oh well, maybe the chef had an off day. We'll try again in a few months. 

When the helpers return from wrapping cookies, IbuA bakes 6 pies from 3 pumpkins we picked up last week, coming back from hiking.

Evening is a blessing as lights lower and the candles glow.

Wednesday

Walk, eat, write, call. Today is the first cookie drop-off day. IbuS washes the empty cookie containers - lots of ancient Tupperware.

We renew our credentials online, update some newsletters, and sort out the home office. Lunch with Rob and Wina is a treat at our friend's place, Waroeng Ethereal.

On the way home we drop by a nursery to see if they have any pine trees. Nope. But there are many "tiles" of lava rock heaped along the roadside. When you live close to volcanos, those are abundant.

W and I reconcile our calendars for next year - 4 conferences/retreat, 2 cohorts of teaching (mine - he has others), a mandatory company update in the USA, and a year of weekly topics (going through the book of Acts).

I remind myself to move one step at a time, live one day at a time. And to do whatever can be done in advance. Tomorrow's hike to decompress is a good idea.

Read more:

*He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom. Isaiah 40:11

What god in heaven or on earth can perform deeds and mighty acts like yours! Deuteronomy 3:24

There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. 1 Corinthians 12:6

Moravian Prayer: O divine Master, how great are you in all your works. Let your spirit fill our lives with gifts of power and purpose, so that your kingdom may prosper and fulfill your design. Amen.